Jordan King Abdullah on three-day India visit; seeks tech, business tie-up
By Ramananda Sengupta | Express News Service | Published: 01st March 2018 07:04 AM |
Last Updated: 01st March 2018 07:04 AM | A+A A- |
King Abdullah II bin Al-Hussein was accorded a grand welcome with Prime Minister Narendra Modi receiving him at the airport, in a special gesture. (Twitter | Raveesh Kumar)
NEW DELHI: Late on Tuesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who was returning from Karnataka, stayed on at the airport to receive King Abdullah of Jordan with his singature bear hug.
“Welcomed His Majesty King Abdullah II to Delhi. It’s wonderful to meet him again, after my brief halt at Amman earlier this month. His visit to India will further deepen bilateral ties between our nations. I look forward to our talks on Thursday,” Modi tweeted minutes later.
King Abdullah, accompanied by a large business delegation and officials, is in India on a three-day official visit. On Wednesday, External Affairs minister Sushma Swaraj met King Abdullah, who then visited IIT-Delhi to explore possible tie-ups with technical institutes in Jordan. He also took part in a in a CEO round table followed by the India-Jordan Business Forum meeting. In his address to the forum organised by FICCI, King Abdullah asserted that there were “lots of opportunities for Indian companies to come and work in Jordan”.
“We’re here in New Delhi seeking partnerships with Indian private sector and investors for the Jordanian private sector,” said Yarub Qudah, Jordan’s Minister of Industry, Trade and Supply, who saw new business opportunities in the areas of infrastructure, healthcare, ICT, renewable energy, fertilisers, chemicals, FMCG and media.
Dr Khair Abu Saalik, Head of Investment and Economic Committee, Jordanian Parliament, listed dry ports, modern transportation systems, manufacturing, automotive components and nanotechnology as other areas where Indian investment and collaboration would be welcome.
FICCI and the Jordan Chambers of Commerce also signed a MoU to promote, strengthen and expand, trade and economic, scientific and technological cooperation between the two nations.
On Thursday, after the ceremonial welcome at Rashtrapati Bhavan, King Abdullah will attend delegation-level talks with PM Modi. Sources said the Palestinian issue, trade and terrorism were likely to figure in the talks between the two leaders.
